Discount bikes?

jl_longstaff said:

What about these bikes; Motobecane, Dawes, Windsor, Fens,and Mercier at half price or so on bike world? Whate gives?

The frames are "generic" and apparently made in Asia ... some might say that they are not up to their original namesakes (not all Motobecanes/etc. were great bikes), but they are undoubtedly quite useable for the non-competitive OR non-snobbish rider.

If you opt for one, be sure the component group is what you want -- you are essentially/often getting the frame for (almost) free if you were to part out the cost of the components AND most certainly if you were to buy the component group from your local bike shop, then the frame + odd bits (seat post, bars & tape, etc.) would then be free ... heck, your LBS would probably have to pay you to take the frame/etc. to bring the price they would charge you for the component group to get the total price down to the mail order price for the particular bikes you've looked at.

To state the obvious, a part of the reason that the mail order retailers can charge less is because they don't have the brick-and-mortar overhead costs (they DO have the advertising costs) + volume of sales further reduces their costs ...

The mail order bikes do not have any after sales in-store service, but that is of dubious value in many [but, not all] cases ... akin to the warranty service on a new automobile ...

Is ONE/TWO/however-many free tune-up(s) equal to the difference in the cost to warrant the premium you would have to pay at your LBS? I think not ...

Thank you for your response. I am reluctant to purchase a product of China or Vietnam. However, Japan or Tiawan would not be a problem. I will contact Bike World to ascertain the country of manufacture before I purchase a bike. I,m not a bike snob, I just need a quality bike with decent components. I do like the idea of purchasing an American bike; Cannondale, Trek (maybe), or of European manufacture, but they are pricey.

alfeng said:

The frames are "generic" and apparently made in Asia ... some might say that they are not up to their original namesakes (not all Motobecanes/etc. were great bikes), but they are undoubtedly quite useable for the non-competitive OR non-snobbish rider.

If you opt for one, be sure the component group is what you want -- you are essentially/often getting the frame for (almost) free if you were to part out the cost of the components AND most certainly if you were to buy the component group from your local bike shop, then the frame + odd bits (seat post, bars & tape, etc.) would then be free ... heck, your LBS would probably have to pay you to take the frame/etc. to bring the price they would charge you for the component group to get the total price down to the mail order price for the particular bikes you've looked at.

To state the obvious, a part of the reason that the mail order retailers can charge less is because they don't have the brick-and-mortar overhead costs (they DO have the advertising costs) + volume of sales further reduces their costs ...

The mail order bikes do not have any after sales in-store service, but that is of dubious value in many [but, not all] cases ... akin to the warranty service on a new automobile ...

Is ONE/TWO/however-many free tune-up(s) equal to the difference in the cost to warrant the premium you would have to pay at your LBS? I think not ...

jl_longstaff said:

Thank you for your response. I am reluctant to purchase a product of China or Vietnam. However, Japan or Tiawan would not be a problem. I will contact Bike World to ascertain the country of manufacture before I purchase a bike. I,m not a bike snob, I just need a quality bike with decent components. I do like the idea of purchasing an American bike; Cannondale, Trek (maybe), or of European manufacture, but they are pricey.

I am going through the same delimma. I am looking at a Trek 2100 at the LBS, but also have seen the Motobecanes and the Windsors. These bikes are both made in Taiwan and as far as I know, are as good of frame as any. I am able to perform tune-ups and assembly so that is not an issue for me. I just can't get over the lack of reviews, good or bad, and long term experiences on these frames/bikes. As anyone, I would hate to pick up one of these bikes and have the frame crack on me one year into it and not have anyone for support.

I am 6k miles in on a motobecane Nemesis..It came with a mixure of DA and Ultegra, my brother works at a LBS and suggested the bike due to the hardware. He took most of the ultegra off and sold it and fitted me with ALL DA at cost, upraded the wheels to velomax ascent, saddle,pedals..ect..I spent 1100 in TOTAL $$ and I could not be happier with its performance. I would highly recommend motobecane

Longstaff,

Not sure if you still need this information but I ordered a Motobecane Sprint from Bikesdirect.com two weeks ago. The frame is made by Kenisis with carbon fork and seat stay. The components are Shimano Ultegra shifters and deraileurs, the brakes are Tekro, wheels and hubs are Vuelta XRP Pro and cranks are TruVativ Elita. The only questionable parts are the seat and pedals- both easily (and inexpensively) replaceable. The bike arrived in great shape and took me less than an hour to put together and quick tune the front deraileur.

Before buying I shopped 3 LBS to ask about brand and support. Only one shop gave me grief and I discounted them very quickly when I said I had a sub=$1000 budget and he pointed me to a $2500 LeMond. The other two shops said they have seen several Motobecanes come through with no more problems than the bikes they sell. The frames appeared to be from the same manufacturer as the Fuji bikes. Both shops offered to assemble and tune for about $80. I compared/road a Fuji Roubiax Pro and a Scattante R-660, all were at least $550 (after tax) more than the Motobecan Sprint with very similar geometry (and lesser components.) While I only have 10 miles on the bike, I have absolutely no complaints about the quality or service of what I ordered.

Best of luck

jl_longstaff said:

What about these bikes; Motobecane, Dawes, Windsor, Fens,and Mercier at half price or so on bike world? Whate gives?

Thanks again for your responses and information. Bikesdirect looks like a good scource and a good deal.

alfeng said:

The frames are "generic" and apparently made in Asia ... some might say that they are not up to their original namesakes (not all Motobecanes/etc. were great bikes), but they are undoubtedly quite useable for the non-competitive OR non-snobbish rider...

"...quite useable for the non-competitive or non-snobbish rider" - seems to be a rather uninformed statement. It appears that you believe it's the equipment rather than the cyclists' ability that enables a cyclist to be "competitive".

By the way, do you know where Giant frames are manufactured?? Hint, hint - Taiwan aka Asia.

For the record, I ride a $650 carbon Pedal Force QS2 (very generic, very made in Asia) frame and I put it up against any $3000-$5000 high dollar frame made in the US, Italy, or any other country in terms of quality, durability, etc. I'm interested in performance only; if you're a poser and interested in the name decal clearcoated on your bike I'll just smile as I ride you off my wheel...

With regard to generic frames, think of them like generic medicines - you get >98% of the performance of the name brands at a mere fraction of the cost because you're not paying for the name brands' marketing, sponsorships of pro teams, huge overhead, etc...$3000 for a frame - ridiculous!! There is no way a frame is worth that...

tonyzackery said:

"...quite useable for the non-competitive or non-snobbish rider" - seems to be a rather uninformed statement. It appears that you believe it's the equipment rather than the cyclists' ability that enables a cyclist to be "competitive".

By the way, do you know where Giant frames are manufactured?? Hint, hint - Taiwan aka Asia.

For the record, I ride a $650 carbon Pedal Force QS2 (very generic, very made in Asia) frame and I put it up against any $3000-$5000 high dollar frame made in the US, Italy, or any other country in terms of quality, durability, etc. I'm interested in performance only; if you're a poser and interested in the name decal clearcoated on your bike I'll just smile as I ride you off my wheel...

With regard to generic frames, think of them like generic medicines - you get >98% of the performance of the name brands at a mere fraction of the cost because you're not paying for the name brands' marketing, sponsorships of pro teams, huge overhead, etc...$3000 for a frame - ridiculous!! There is no way a frame is worth that...

WHAT?!?

You have misread what I wrote ...

Re-read what you cited ... if you don't understand that it is the SAME thing you stated then you need to go back to school for further education in the English language!

As I posted earlier, I was up against this decision as well. Well, just the other day, I decided to go with the Trek (It wasn't $3000 either). My primary reasoning behind this was the frames "Lifetime" warranty. Both bikes had it should I need it, but the companies who had their names on the frames were very different. Trek has been around a long time and from the looks of it, will continue to be around much longer. Of course theres nothing 100% nowdays, but thats my gut feeling. Motobecane and Windsor, on the other hand, have had company problems before, don't have much behind them today, and are questionable at best after doing some research. So I felt like the "Lifetime" warranty wasn't necessarially the life of the frame but more the life of the company. Who will warranty my frame when Motobecane goes bankrupt again?

alfeng said:

WHAT?!?

You have misread what I wrote ...

Re-read what you cited ... if you don't understand that it is the SAME thing you stated then you need to go back to school for further education in the English language!

LOL, not going to get in a pissing match with you. It is what it is...😄

I ride a $650 carbon Pedal Force QS2 (very generic, very made in Asia) frame and I put it up against any $3000-$5000 high dollar

Can you tell me what is the Specification for Carbon pedal force QS2
the detail description of bike parts.

tonyzackery said:

"...quite useable for the non-competitive or non-snobbish rider" - seems to be a rather uninformed statement. It appears that you believe it's the equipment rather than the cyclists' ability that enables a cyclist to be "competitive".

By the way, do you know where Giant frames are manufactured?? Hint, hint - Taiwan aka Asia.

For the record, I ride a $650 carbon Pedal Force QS2 (very generic, very made in Asia) frame and I put it up against any $3000-$5000 high dollar frame made in the US, Italy, or any other country in terms of quality, durability, etc. I'm interested in performance only; if you're a poser and interested in the name decal clearcoated on your bike I'll just smile as I ride you off my wheel...

With regard to generic frames, think of them like generic medicines - you get >98% of the performance of the name brands at a mere fraction of the cost because you're not paying for the name brands' marketing, sponsorships of pro teams, huge overhead, etc...$3000 for a frame - ridiculous!! There is no way a frame is worth that...

the bikes you're talking about (on BikesDirect.com, of course) are a mixture of mid-level bikes and knock-offs, you're on your own for assembly and warranty. you make the call.

bigpedaler said:

the bikes you're talking about (on BikesDirect.com, of course) are a mixture of mid-level bikes and knock-offs, you're on your own for assembly and warranty. you make the call.

I bought a Windsor Kennet $f995 no tax or shipping. It is an aluminum frame with carbon stays, carbon fork, full Ultegra 20 speed with the exception of the brakes and they are Cane Creek SC5s. American Classic wheels are nice. As far as the frame check out kinesis.com.twkinesis.com.twOpen ↗ and see all the frames they manufacture for bike companies. My bike has made a made in Tawain sticker so I assume that's where it is from.
My experience has been positive, especially for the money. I ordered it on a
Thursday night and had it by Tuesday afternoon. It comes in a suprisingly small box, but is extremely well packed and protected. It takes a fair amount of assembly and an even greater amount of adjustment. Don't underestimate the adjustments. It took about an hour and a half to get everything right, which is well worth the $600-$800 difference between it and a similar trek or specialized. Bike fully assembled with pedals weighed 18.5 (size 54cm). I've been riding a month and it shifts perfect, rides nices, stiff lateraly, but compliant vertically, wheels are still dead true.
There is certainly value added by buying from a LBS, just not enough in this case to justify almost double the cost.

bigpedaler said:

the bikes you're talking about (on BikesDirect.com, of course) are a mixture of mid-level bikes and knock-offs, you're on your own for assembly and warranty. you make the call.

No, I am not talking about BikesDirect.com. Mostly they are 90% assembled.
No warranty? never heard of this!

jl_longstaff said:

Thank you for your response. I am reluctant to purchase a product of China or Vietnam. However, Japan or Tiawan would not be a problem. I will contact Bike World to ascertain the country of manufacture before I purchase a bike. I,m not a bike snob, I just need a quality bike with decent components. I do like the idea of purchasing an American bike; Cannondale, Trek (maybe), or of European manufacture, but they are pricey.

Then don't buy a lower end Trek, Cdale, Fuji, Iron Horse or any number of other builders. They all use the same factories in Taiwan for bikes under ~$1500.

Apparently you did not read my post. I said Tiawan would be fine but NOT China or Vietnam. Cannondale builds ALL of their frames in Pennsylvania...thats in the USA.
=anomaly]Then don't buy a lower end Trek, Cdale, Fuji, Iron Horse or any number of other builders. They all use the same factories in Taiwan for bikes under ~$1500.[/QUOTE]

jl_longstaff said:

Apparently you did not read my post. I said Tiawan would be fine but NOT China or Vietnam. Cannondale builds ALL of their frames in Pennsylvania...thats in the USA.
=anomaly]Then don't buy a lower end Trek, Cdale, Fuji, Iron Horse or any number of other builders. They all use the same factories in Taiwan for bikes under ~$1500.

[/QUOTE]My mistake.

jl_longstaff said:

What about these bikes; Motobecane, Dawes, Windsor, Fens,and Mercier at half price or so on bike world? Whate gives?

I built up a Windsor Kennet this winter, as well as 2 Cannondales and a Ridley - I believe Motobecane, Windsor and Mercier frames are all built at Kinesis in Taiwan. Mass produced but good quality. Only delta I really saw in the product itself was the finish. The Ridley and C'dales have a much nicer finish/graphics/decal set (although I like that the Windsor has far fewer of the decals). Even the welds were nice on the Windsor frame, although I can't judge what the long term reliability will be yet.
So as other posters mention as long as the componenets are good, you are getting a pretty darn nice bike for the price. Hard to beat - the only thing you are loosing is the relationship with the LBS and maybe some service from the manufacturer as well, and that value is totally dependent on the quality of service they provide. I am lucky I have 2 pretty good shops nearby... so I try to get some stuff there to help keep them in business 🙂. Bought all the kids bikes there too...
I sent 2 e-mails to Windsor asking about specs for componenets and never received a reply. C'dale was VERY responsive, both through e-mail and on the phone.

Geo

The traditional bike shop model is on the decline to the point that many of us in more rural areas have no choice but to buy online. I just purchased my daughters bike online and we've been very happy with it. But there was no real choice.

Let's see. Drive 2 hours to the nearest decent shop, pay 50% more for the same thing, then never see them again. Or buy online.

I used to be a fan of the local bike shop but within 2 years of Walmart opening up, they went the way of the dinasour...